Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R,C,I,Ref – East Shore) and Assemblyman Ron Castorina (R,C,I,Ref – South Shore) hosted a press conference at Greencroft Playground in Bay Terrace today to highlight City Hall’s failure to protect schoolchildren from speeding vehicles with the most basic tool: the stop sign. The two lawmakers say the city should place “all-way” stop signs at intersections near certain schools and playgrounds to protect pedestrians.

Greencroft Playground lies at the intersection of Redgrave Avenue and Greencroft Avenue, adjacent to PS 53, a kindergarten through 5th-grade elementary school. Closest to the intersection is a jungle gym and slide, just a block from Hylan Boulevard, the borough’s busiest thoroughfare. The property also contains a baseball field, basketball courts, a second jungle gym, and other amenities for children and families.

Stop signs exist on Greencroft Avenue but not on Redgrave Avenue, which runs from Hylan Boulevard to the school and experiences faster and more frequent traffic. Additionally, there are no stop signs on Durant Avenue at Ainsworth Avenue in front of the school. The pair also pointed to lack of “all-way” stop signs at neighboring school I.S.24 and vegetation growth along Hylan Boulevard that cause pedestrians to walk inthe middle of one of Staten Island’s busiests streets to access bus stops.

“If Mayor de Blasio is truly concerned about pedestrian safety he would address situations like this. I attended PS 53 as a child and I spent a lot of time walking down these sidewalks, crossing these streets, and playing in Greencroft Playground, and the situation has become increasingly dangerous with more cars on our streets than ever. A stop sign is such a simple solution.” said Malliotakis. “And, just up the street on Hylan Boulevard, pedestrians are unable to walk on the sidewalk because the city fails to maintain vegetation overgrowth. You say ‘Vision Zero’ but here you have a situation where you are forced to walk on one of Staten Island’s major artieries to get to your bus stop.”

“Unfortunately, the speeding problem on Staten Island has only gotten worse. Drivers far too frequently exceed the speed limit by over ten or fifteen miles per hour. The speed camera program has not deterred speeding on our Island. It has however generated revenue for the City of New York. If we truly want to ensure the safety of our children around the schools which they spend most of their time, we need all-way stop signs. We need to stop pretending that this speed camera program is here for safety and start implementing measures that will make a difference,” said Assemblyman Castorina.

“Mayor de Blasio ran on a platform that promised to lift people out of poverty and make New York City more affordable. A new study by StreetEasy.com shows that New York City is LESS affordable and the tale of two cities has only worsened during the mayor’s first term. Bill de Blasio’s reliance on increasing the property tax levy 28% as well as double digit increases in water bills has made it increasingly difficult for property owners and renters to keep up. These are the types of taxes and fees that are passed directly on to renters. Bill de Blasio has actively lobbied against imposition of a property tax cap that would limit these increases.

“As Mayor, I will continue to fight for the tax cap proposed in Albany, that will protect property owners and tenants alike. The bottom line is hardworking New Yorkers can’t afford another four years of Bill de Blasio as mayor.”

Days after another NYPD officer was targeted and almost killed by a mentally ill man, GOP mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis is out with a thoughtful plan for how New York can better deal with people suffering from serious mental illness.

Those unfortunates, Malliotakis noted Monday, “have become lost in a system that is mostly geared for the high-functioning mentally ill.” She wants to shift the emphasis, targeting resources to the most desperate.

That means replacing some of Mayor de Blasio’s programs (such as the ad campaign focused on removing the “stigma” of mental illness, and others that target lesser issues, such as depression) with ones that focus on, for example, paranoid schizophrenics.

The kind of people, in short, whose dysfunction is so serious they can’t understand what’s wrong with them. This, she argues, can save taxpayer dollars by diverting people from the criminal-justice system into treatment.

A Plan for New York City’s Seriously Mentally Ill

Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, the Republican nominee and the clear alternative to Bill de Blasio in the race for mayor, held a Monday morning news conference on the steps of New York’s City Hall to release her Treatment B4 Crisis Plan for New York City’s seriously mentally ill population. The 12 point plan is geared at refocusing the city’s efforts on the seriously mentally ill as opposed to the de Blasio administration’s concentration on the high functioning mentally ill. In her remarks, Assemblywoman Malliotakis said, “Under the de Blasio administration we have witnessed a growth in incidents with seriously mentally ill individuals who have become lost in a system that is mostly geared for the high functioning mentally ill. When these individuals act out they put all New Yorkers at risk.”

Joining Assemblywoman Malliotakis at the news conference were DJ Jaffe, Executive Director of Mental Illness Policy Org. and author of the book Insane Consequences, Erik Tjornhom, Sr., a former member of the NYPD and a Mental Health Social Worker and David Hochauser a former member of the American Red Cross of Greater New York.

Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis said, “Everyday New Yorkers witness the realities of mental illness on the streets of our city and through reports in the media. The seriously mentally ill make headlines far too often. Usually for actions that cause us to shake our head and say, how was this allowed to happen.

“Today, I am releasing the Treatment B4 Crisis Plan which lays out a 12 point plan for addressing an individual’s mental health issues before they reach a crisis point. Among the points included in the plan, is a more robust implementation of Kendra’s Law, a more proactive approach to mental health evaluation and care in city facilities; requiring more supportive housing units be allocated to those with mental illness and an expanded psychiatric capacity in city hospitals operated by the Health & Hospitals Corporation.

“Under the de Blasio administration we have witnessed a growth in incidents with seriously mentally ill individuals becoming lost in a system that is mostly geared for the high functioning mentally ill. When these individuals act out, they put all New Yorkers at risk. Especially the men and women of the NYPD who have become the city’s first line of defense in a problem better suited for social workers and medical professional trained to deal with the mentally ill. In just the past few months, we lost our beloved Police Officer Familia and EMT Arroyo who were both murdered by seriously mentally ill individuals who had been through the revolving door of arrest and treatment that did nothing to help them cope with their illness. This past Thursday, another police officer, Hart Nguyen was shot three times by an emotionally disturbed man but thankfully his bullet proof vest saved him.”

Executive Director of Mental Illness Policy Org., DJ Jaffe said, “Mental Illness Policy Org thanks Nicole Malliotakis for proposing smart, workable solutions to help the seriously mentally ill. Unlike Mayor de Blasio’s ThriveNYC plan, the Malliotakis plan focuses city mental health resources on those who are the most seriously ill, rather than the highest functioning and least symptomatic. Because of that, it will have a much greater impact on reducing homelessness, arrest, incarceration, and suicide. Her plan will keep the public, police, and patients safer. Among the solutions she proposes is mandatory evaluation of prisoners with mental illness and involuntarily committed patients who are being released to see what services they need to stay safe in the community. These are the two highest risk groups. She also supports easier access to psychiatric hospitalization and greater use of Kendra’s Law which has reduced homelessness, arrest and incarceration of the mentally ill in the 70% range.

“We families of the seriously mentally ill thank Ms. Malliotakis for helping to send our seriously mentally ill loved ones to the head of the lines for services, rather than to jails, shelters, prisons and morgues.”

FACEBOOK

YOUTUBE

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

UPCOMING EVENTS

Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, the Republican nominee or mayor, will hold a news conference at 10:00 am on Monday, August 14th on the steps of City Hall. Assemblywoman Malliotakis will release her Treatment B4 Crisis Plan to help New York City’s mentally ill. WHO: Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis WHERE: The steps of New York’s City Hall WHEN: […]